Chartley railway station

Chartley
Chartley station site (2017)
General information
LocationStowe-by-Chartley, Borough of Stafford,
England
Coordinates52°50′47″N 1°59′41″W / 52.8465°N 1.9948°W / 52.8465; -1.9948
Grid referenceSK004276
Platforms2
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companyStafford and Uttoxeter Railway
Pre-groupingGreat Northern Railway
Post-groupingLondon and North Eastern Railway
Key dates
23 December 1867Station opened as Stowe
3 October 1874Renamed Chartley
4 December 1939Station closed[1]
Location

Chartley railway station served the village of Stowe-by-Chartley, in Staffordshire, England, between 1867 and 1939.

History

The station was opened by the Stafford and Uttoxeter Railway in 1867. Originally named after the village of Stowe in 1874, it was renamed Chartley and Stowe in deference to nearby Chartley Hall, the residence of Earl Ferrers.[2]

The Stafford and Uttoxeter Railway was purchased for £100,000 by the Great Northern Railway (GNR) in July 1881; the line subsequently passed into London and North Eastern Railway ownership, following Railway Grouping in 1923.

Passenger services ended in 1939 and the station was closed.[3]

Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Line and station closed
Great Northern Railway
Line and station closed

Accident

A special train had been provided for the Meynell Hunt on 30 March 1882; it left Derby Friargate with four horseboxes from the GNR and the Manchester, Sheffield & Lincolnshire Railway, plus three passenger carriages. At Sudbury, six North Staffordshire horseboxes were added after the first coach, which was behind the engine. Thus only one vehicle was continuously braked.

Although the driver was using care in approaching stations, he was being piloted by the fireman who knew the line, but not that the passing loop at Chartley had just been brought into use. The train approached Chartley at 30 to 35 miles an hour and the leading coach became derailed. This caused the horseboxes to strike the timber platform, causing severe damage and several horses were killed or injured; none of the passengers or crew were hurt.

The inspecting officer for the Board of Trade recommended that, in future, the facing points for all passing loops should be straight, with the S curve at the trailing end.[4]

The site today

A shelter on one platform is the only building to survive to this day. During 2001, it was re-erected at a few miles away at Amerton light railway.[3]

References

  1. ^ Butt, R.V.J., (1995) The Directory of Railway Stations, Yeovil: Patrick Stephens
  2. ^ Jones, P. (1981) The Stafford and Uttoxeter Railway, Salisbury: The Oakwood Press
  3. ^ a b "Chartley Railway Station". Staffordshire Past Track. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  4. ^ "Accident Returns: Extract for the Accident at Chartley on 30th March 1882". Railways Archive. Retrieved 20 February 2026.

Further reading

  • Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2016). Derby to Stoke-on-Trent. West Sussex: Middleton Press. fig. 86. ISBN 9781908174932. OCLC 954271104.